1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improvement in carrying cartons and more particularly to a top loading rectangular carton having a hand hold in a sidewall.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many different types of cartons have been designed for carrying bottled beverages such as beer. The main objective is to produce a carton which is inexpensive but which has relatively large rigidity and strength. Moreover, the present trend, reinforced in many states by law, is toward returnable bottles and consequently, the carton must also serve as a retripper when filled with the empty bottles. This requirement places an additional severe restriction on the carton design since many prior art cartons rely on a complete rigid structure provided by a permanently affixed top cover comprising a secured flap system to provide the necessary strength. Once such cartons have been opened to gain access to the contents, the flaps cannot be resealed and, hence, the carton's rigidity is irretrievably lost. Many prior art cartons of this type are also provided with hand holes in an end or sidewall. In many instances, these hand holes are so formed that they are in the nature of "punch-ins" hinged along the top edge. This simple construction provides some advantages but also has several inherent weaknesses, in particular, there is a great tendency for the sidewall to rip or tear when being carried, the rip or tear generally being initiated at the tear usually at an upper corner thereof. This tendency is increased if, as in many instances, the container wall containing the hand hole is able to "bow" when the container is being carried. Reinforcement of the container wall by providing added thickness has been suggested to overcome this problem. In some known containers, when added strength was required a prohibitably expensive, thick paper board was used in the construction of the carton or an additional layer of paperboard was glued or stapled to the inside of the container wall adjacent the hand hole. However, this method is, again, expensive, not only increasing the cost of the carton but also necessitating additional assembling operations. A carton of this type is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,710,135 to Gaylord, where a narrow reinforcing strip of material is permanently secured to the container wall above the hand hole. However, this carton has several major practical disadvantages including the difficulty of locating, aligning and securing the reinforcing strip in position on the wall. In fact, it would most probably be impossible to effect such an operation at the speed necessary to make such a carton economically under modern conditions. In addition, the end wall in such a carton would bow outwardly when being carried and the integrity of the V-shaped reinforcement could not be maintained and a simple doubling of the carton wall results, a much less rigid and strong arrangement. In view of the known disadvantages of affixing reinforcement to the carton wall container the hand hole, attempts have been made to provide the required reinforcement by having a loose (unsecured) insert inside the carton, a portion of which lies adjacent the hand hole. Such a carton is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,284,385 to Freshwaters. Freshwaters' carton includes an end section which lies against the endwall containing the hand hole. The end section has a hole which coincides with the punched-in hand hole in the carton endwall, the hinged flap of the punch-in hand hole being arranged to extend through the coincident hole in the end section and turn upward. A major feature of the invention is that the instruck flap abutts the undersurface of the top wall of the carton so that lifting force places the portion of the reinforcing end section between the hand hole and the undersurface of the top wall in compression and transmits the lifting force to the carton top wall, this allegedly distributing the lifting force more uniformly. However, this carton also has some significant disadvantages; the carton top wall is, of course, formed by flaps which are unsealed to extract the carton contents and are not resealable. Hence, once opened no reinforcing effect is provided and a drastically weakened carton results unsuitable for retripper use. Moreover, this carton utilizes a very complex and expensive insert which does not assist in preventing undesirable bowing of sidewalls or increasing the inherent rigidity of the carton since as is clear from the teaching of the patent, the insert is not secured to the carton walls (the avoidance of such a securing step is a major objective of the invention mainly because, in known cartons, such a step is expensive and time consuming). In fact, with the complex bottle divider unit utilized in this carton, it would be extremely difficult if not impossible to provide for a securing step at any speed whatsoever and definitely not at the speeds dictated by modern conditions and, hence, for both reasons, securing the insert to the container sidewalls would not only not be considered as a possibility but is actually indicated as being undesirable if the advantages taught by that patent are to be achieved. Two further cartons which utilize instruck punched-in flaps are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,310,408 to Ehrenfeld and 3,553,549 to Gilchrist. The former uses, as does Freshwaters above, a non-secured insert but in Freshwaters case this is in two parts, hence, requiring additional manufacturing and assembling steps. The insert can also have an "instruck" flap which forms a double wall with the sidewall, the double wall not being a lamination since the components are not secured together. Hence, although a small increase in strength may be achieved by this arrangement, there is little reduction in the tendency of the carton wall to tear and once opened, the additional strength is effectively lost. Moreover, as stated, the two-piece insert is a luxury a mass-produced give-away carton cannot afford. The latter patent to Gilchrist discloses an end-loading carton which may be used as a retripper since the rigidity and strength imparted by a secured top cover is not totally lost when the carton is opened because of the provision of an opening section having an area less than that of the carton top. Upon the panel opening, a reinforcing rim is left around the top of the carton end and sidewalls. The instruck flap must, of necessity, extend to and contact the underside of the container top. This, again, gives an unsecured simple double/triple wall effect as discussed previously. To obtain the full benefit of increased strength, it is necessary for the carrier to physically maintain the instruck flap hard against its associated front wall and the container top undersurface (as in Freshwaters). This, in fact, is extremely tiring and in practice cannot be maintained for any length of time. Moroever, it is not possible to have an insert in such a carton and bowing of the hand hole-containing wall with its attended disadvantages can readily occur. It may be noted that, purely for aesthetic reasons, the flap of this container has curved or angled sides which extend at least to and indeed beyond the flap's hinge line.
In view of the many disadvantages associated with such cartons having a simple hand hole, cartons have been developed which include an extensible handle member which is normally recessed within the walls of the carton during storage and shipping but is extendible to a carrying position. However, these cartons tend to be of a rather complex structure and require the use of extensive amounts of material both of which make the overall package relativly expensive. Notwithstanding the cost factor, in some cases, for example, Ontario in Canada, this package has atained extensive use because of its ease of handling etc.
It can be seen from the above, that there is a great need for an inexpensive drop-load carton for beverage containers which will meet the following:
(i) Can be made of relatively inexpensive board material whilst still providing the necessary strength and rigidity both when sealed and in an opened condition; PA1 (ii) Can be rapidly manufactured and assembled when required; and PA1 (iii) Has adequate and convenient handle means which will not cause a tear or rupture while the carton is being used.